TEAM EFA LiNKS

CHARiTY OF THE MONTH PROGRAM

Each month, TEAM EFA designates one animal charity as our Charity of the Month.

All EFA Charities of the Month is the charity of choice of at least one EFA member.

EFA members who choose to donate a portion of their product sales to the EFA Charity of the Month, please tag those listings with our cotm tag.

If after the month is done & your products are still tagged with the cotm tag then those will go to benefit next month's cotm. If you wish to donate a percentage to another charity, including a -previous- cotm, please remove 'cotm' from your tag.

Using these tags helps to identify your pledge and makes it easier for shoppers & Treasury makers to locate your cotm products.

They've got that marvelous snout for one thing. Pig sense of smell is more acute than their canine counterparts, so much so that there has been interest in training them as bomb or drug sniffing pigs. Training pigs for that task has proved more difficult than training dogs, since a pig's motives (FOOD) tend to be radically different than a dog's (LOVE ME).

They also invented the mud bath. Pigs don't sweat ("sweat like a pig" is WAY off base) so they roll around in the mud to keep cool. Their filthy coating also protects them from insect bites and sunburn. Even though they spend a large portion of time covered in mud, pigs are hygienic in their habits: a herd will designate a latrine that is far from their food and water. Even piglets a few hours old will leave their nests to do their piggy business.

Pigs have been domestic farm animals since around 7000BC. So for approximately 10,000 years, they have operated as garbage disposals for farm families (as consummate omnivores, they eat pretty much anything) in spring and dinner for the same families in fall. Left to their own devices, they have a complex social system, elaborate vocal communication and love to cuddle. Or not, it really depends on the pig.

Pig intelligence has never really been questioned - there are plenty of stories about farm yard pigs working together to undo pen latches so they can take illicit strolls around the fields. The best of these stories tells of pigs opening other animals' pens so that they can all wander around together. But it's only recently that researchers have attempted to quantify their intelligence. Since there is no general IQ test for animals, intelligence evaluations are based on the principle of "Can they learn what humans teach them?" Different species were bred for different purposes, and so their minds, motives and retention vary greatly. Pigs have long memories and excel at problem solving. In one 1990s study, they quickly learned to manipulate a joystick indicate that they could distinguish between new pictures and ones they had already seen. Their motivation? Skittles, Reese's Pieces and M&Ms.

Polar bears range throughout the Artic where they hunt for their main food source, ringed and bearded seals, through ice openings. “Five nations have polar bear populations: the United States (Alaska), Canada, Russia, Greenland, and Norway.”

They are the animal kingdom’s largest non-aquatic predator.

Polar Bear moms usually bear two cubs, which stay with their mother for 2-1/2 years.

Polar bears rely on stable pack ice for their survival. Due to melting ice floes, their habitat is being threatened by global warming!

Polar bears are specifically adapted for living on the ice. They don’t need water to survive since they get all of their liquid from the prey they eat.

Polar bears can travel thousands of miles per year following the advance and retreat of ice.

Polar bears have a home range that is far greater than any other bear. One bear’s range can be 45 times the size of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which is home to approximately 400 black bears.

Polar bears are well insulated for cold climate—an average temperature of -29 degrees F in Jan. and Feb--with two layers of fur, and up to 10 cm or 3.9 in. of blubber. Their two layers of fur consist of a dense layer of underfur and an outer layer of guard hairs, which are actually transparent but can appear to white, yellow, or tan. Compact ears and tail also help conserve heat.

Polar Bears have dark blue-black skin under all that white fur, which help absorb the sun’s rays.

Polar bears have keen hearing as well as other sharp senses that help them survive.

Polar bears prefer to walk at a leisurely pace so they don’t overheat like they often do when they run.

Here are some ways for you to celebrate:

Visit your local zoo and see polar bears!

Watch a documentary on polar bears!

Wear white! Also feel free to wear white faux fur and many extra layers so you feel and look like a polar bear.

Be sure to dress your toddlers and dogs in their best white polar bear gear!

Practice the polar bear pose in yoga: Lie down on all fours like a polar bear and cover your nose with your “paws”!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

1. Save Abandoned Rabbits From Being Killed at the University of Victoria, BC

Rabbits who’ve been dumped at UVIC by irresponsible people had exploded in population on campus. While about 900 were saved last year, UVIC’s policy on letting the ones remaining inside of its traffic circle to live has been reversed and the school will begin killing rabbits on Feb 28.

Sign the petitiontelling UVIC that rescue groups should be given the opportunity to save the remaining rabbits and also to support bylaws that will prevent the sale of rabbits who are not spayed/neutered.

In 2009, the European Union vowed to ban animal testing for cosmetics and sales of cosmetics that are tested on animals by 2013. The cosmetics industry is now pushing for a delay that could put this huge step for animals on hold for another ten years.

PetSmart is running a campaign offering a $10 discount on reptiles to people who bring in ticket stubs from the movie Rango. Most people will agree that deciding to bring an animal into your home requires careful consideration as they require a lot of care, attention and a lifelong commitment.

Canada’s annual seal hunt is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on earth. This year’s hunt began on Thursday in Nova Scotia and will kill 1,900 baby grey seals. The quota for grey seals was raised this year and the Harp seal quota has yet to be set. Despite dwindling markets, global outcry and a majority of Canadians being against this cruel hunt, politicians are trying to keep this dying industry alive.

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LiNKS to EFA MEMBERS

Etsy for Animals (EFA) aka Artists Helping Animals, is a team of independent artists, craftspeople, vintage sellers and craft suppliers on Etsy.com who are dedicated to providing charitable relief to animals by donating a portion of the profits from their shops to an animal charity of their choosing, and/or to EFA's featured Charity of the Month.